


Osmosis

by mithrel



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Blanket Permission, M/M, Podfic Welcome
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-06-24
Updated: 2009-06-24
Packaged: 2017-11-10 09:18:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,508
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/464676
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mithrel/pseuds/mithrel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Merlin’s magic is transferred to Arthur.  They must find a way to reverse the transference before Uther finds out.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Osmosis

“I _wish_ I didn’t live in a kingdom where the ruler thinks it’s a good idea to piss off powerful sorceresses,” Merlin complained to Gaius, collapsing in a chair.

“You got rid of her, didn’t you?”

“And almost exposed myself as a magic-user in the process,” he retorted. “Besides, if I know Annowre, we haven’t seen the last of her.”

Gaius grunted, and passed him a bowl of stew.

***

The next day, Merlin was picking up in Arthur’s rooms (sometimes he thought he threw things on the floor on purpose, just to annoy him) when a blinding wave of pain shot through him.

He fell to his knees, clutching his head. His skin felt like it was being flayed.

It lasted only a moment, then he looked up from where he lay on the floor, to see Arthur looking down at him in concern.

“Merlin? Are you alright?”

“Fine,” he muttered, getting up. But he wasn’t fine. There was something different, something wrong…he didn’t know what.

Arthur helped him into a chair. “What happened?”

“I don’t know. All of a sudden I was just in agony.” He thought of something. “You weren’t affected, were you?”

“No. Well,” he amended, “I felt a little dizzy, but that’s all. Do you need anything? Water?”

Merlin nodded, and Arthur looked around. There was a pitcher of water with a cup next to it on the table nearby. He stood up to get it…

…and the cup flew into his hand.

Merlin fell out of his chair.

Arthur dropped the cup as if it had scalded him, looking as if he’d inadvertently had sex with Morgana.

“You used magic!” Merlin accused from the floor. “Why didn’t you _tell_ me?!”

“I…what? No! No, I didn’t! I can’t have!” Arthur sounded frantic, which, given his father’s attitude toward magic, only made sense.

“It’s nothing to be ashamed of,” Merlin told him.

“You don’t understand. I _can’t_ use magic! I never have!”

“You mean this is the first time you’ve done anything like that?”

“ _Yes!_ ”

“Come on,” Merlin said, picking himself up, grabbing Arthur’s arm and pulling him toward the door.

“Where are we going?”

“I’m taking you to see Gaius.”

***

“And you say the cup flew to your hand?” Gaius asked Arthur.

“Yes.”

“And you’ve never used magic before?”

“No, never.”

“Hmm.” Gaius turned to Merlin. “And this happened right after _you_ collapsed, correct?”

“That’s right. Do you know what that was about?”

“I have my suspicions. Merlin, put out the fire.”

Confused, Merlin got up.

“No, stay where you are. Put out the fire.”

“But…” he looked at Arthur.

“I think we’re beyond all that now. I want to make sure I’m right. Put out the fire.”

Shooting a nervous glance at Arthur, Merlin reached out a hand to extinguish the fire.

Nothing happened. Frowning, he tried again. And again.

He turned to Gaius in horror. “It’s gone! I can’t do it! _My magic’s gone!_ ”

Gaius nodded. “As I’d thought,” but Arthur was talking over him.

“What do you mean ‘your magic’? You can’t do magic!”

At Merlin’s glare and Gaius’ exasperated look, he ventured, “Can you?”

“Well, not _anymore_ , obviously. What happened, Gaius?” Merlin demanded.

“As I see it, we have three problems here. Problem number one: you, Merlin, are no longer magic.”

Merlin moaned and buried his face in his hands.

“Problem two: your magical ability seems to somehow have transferred itself to Arthur.”

“ _What?_ ” Arthur squawked.

“Annowre,” Merlin said flatly. “That’s the only explanation.”

“It seems so.”

“Who’s Annowre?” Arthur wanted to know.

“Yet another sorceress wanting to bring down your father. I stopped her,” he said, with a hint of pride. “But I didn’t kill her, and apparently she thinks that I won’t be able to defend the kingdom if I don’t have magic. Not to mention the chaos that will ensue if the Crown Prince is found out to be a sorcerer.”

“Which is the third problem,” Gaius put in.

Arthur went grey. “God. My father. If he found out–”

“He’d kill you,” Merlin finished.

This time it was Arthur who buried his head in his hands.

Merlin turned to Gaius. “So what do we do?”

“I’ll look in your book, see if there’s a way to reverse this. You need to teach Arthur to control his magic.”

Teach him to control instinctive magic that had just been thrust upon him. Without being able to use magic himself. He sighed. “Yes, Gaius.”

“Oh, one other thing,” Gaius said as they were leaving. “You might ask the dragon for advice, he may know how to deal with this.”

Merlin rolled his eyes.

***

“Merlin, where are we going?” Arthur demanded, as they descended the steps to the armoury.

“You’ll see.”

The guards didn’t hinder them, which was nice for a change, especially since Merlin usually sneaked by them using magic, and he wouldn’t be able to do that now. The absence of magic tore at him, a gaping wound that he couldn’t ignore. He remembered something he’d said to Gaius, back when he’d first come to Camelot.

”If I can’t use magic, what have I got? I’m just a nobody, and I always will be. If I can’t use magic, I might as well die.”

It had happened. He didn’t have magic anymore. He couldn’t do any of the things he used to take for granted. He wasn’t going to die, didn’t want to, but the knowledge of what he’d lost, the possibility that he’d never get it back, preyed on his mind.

“What’s going on? And what was that about a dragon?” Arthur asked as they went down the tunnel.

Merlin sighed. “There’s a dragon living under the castle.”

“Living _under the castle?!_ ” Arthur yelped.

“Relax, he’s chained up. Your father imprisoned him there twenty years ago. Although why Gaius thinks asking him will help…”

“Why, you don’t think he’ll know how to help?” Arthur asked curiously.

“Oh, he’ll know. But he’ll drop hints and riddles, and spout off about destiny, and just generally never give a straight answer. You have no idea how annoying that is.”

Arthur chuckled. “I can guess.”

They came out in the cave. The dragon wasn’t there, but that wasn’t unusual. Merlin called out, “Please, I need your help!”

The dragon flapped down to sit on the rock, and Arthur almost bolted, but Merlin grabbed his arm.

The dragon looked at them and chuckled. “I should say you do, young warlock. Although that description hardly applies anymore.” He fixed his gaze on Arthur. “Still, perhaps this mess will give you greater sympathy for the plight of magic users in your father’s kingdom, hmm?”

Arthur gulped. “Y-yes my lord.”

Merlin gaped at him. He didn’t even address his father with such respect. On the other hand, his father couldn’t roast him where he stood.

The dragon chuckled again.

“What should we do?” Merlin demanded. “If Arthur is caught using magic, he’ll be killed!”

“To restore what has been lost, the souls of the giver and the receiver must touch.”

“What does that mean?” Merlin demanded, without much hope of an answer.

The dragon gathered himself, preparatory to taking flight. As he took off, chain rattling, Arthur cringed away. A voice floated down from the roof of the cavern. “You will know, young warlock. When the time comes, you will know.”

***

“Just what the hell is that supposed to mean?” Arthur demanded, once they were back in his rooms. “‘The souls must touch’?”

Merlin shrugged. “I told you he wouldn’t give us a straight answer.” He growled. “I’ve been dealing with this from day one, I should be used to it, but once, just _once_ , I’d like him to come out and tell me what he means!”

Arthur sighed. “Well, it was worth a try. Maybe Gaius can come up with something.”

“I hope so.”

“But what am I going to _do?_ I have dinner with the Court tonight, and if the magic breaks out…”

Merlin shuddered. “Yeah, we need to figure out a way to get it under your control. We don’t even really know what you can do yet. You might have all my abilities, or just some of them. That’s the first thing we need to figure out.”

Arthur got up. “I’ll see we’re not disturbed.”

Two hours later, they’d decided that Arthur’s magic was all instinctive, and connected to his emotions. That was going to make it difficult to control, since Merlin knew better than anyone how rash Arthur could be.

“Alright, so, you can move objects around, shove people away if you’re being attacked, and you also have an unfortunate tendency to fling things around when you’re upset.”

They’d discovered _that_ when Arthur had seen how late it was getting, and panicked.

“So how do I control it?”

“You just…you just do. You keep your emotions under control, you don’t decide to do things.”

“That’s not much help,” Arthur complained.

“I know, sorry.” He sighed. “It would be so much easier to show you if I had my magic back, but…”

“But if you had your magic back, it would mean the problem was solved,” Arthur finished. “How do you stand it?” he asked suddenly.

“Stand what?” Merlin wanted to know.

“The magic. I can feel it, running through me, thrumming in the back of my head, trying to get out.”

Merlin thought about it. “I’m used to it, I guess. This entire day, I’ve been feeling like something’s missing. Like I’ve suddenly gone blind, or deaf.”

“That bad?” Arthur asked.

Merlin nodded. “You don’t just use magic, it…it fills you up. Even if you’re not doing anything with it, you can sense things.”

“What sort of things?”

“The…the life around you, the energy. It was stronger in Ealdor, but even here, I can feel all the people around me.”

Arthur thought about it. “I did notice…I don’t know, it’s like that feeling you get when someone’s staring at you, but it’s there all the time.”

Merlin smiled sadly. “That’s it.”

“I don’t like it. It’s spooky.”

“Well, hopefully you won’t have to deal with it for much longer. Look, we have to keep working on this. The way I see it, your magic flares up if you’re angry or scared.”

“I suppose so.”

“You’ll have to try to control your emotions.”

“I _know_ that Merlin!” he snapped, and a wind sprang up from nowhere and blew through the room.

Arthur winced. “It’s getting worse.”

“OK, look, it’s fairly easy to get moving objects under your control, that’s the first thing I learned. You need to decide to bring it to you, or put it somewhere, or what have you. If you don’t, nothing happens. So, concentrate, try to pick up that pitcher.”

***

Merlin paced back and forth, waiting for Arthur to get back. He had learnt quickly, and by the time he’d had to leave for dinner had gained some measure of control, but the magic was linked to his emotions, and it was possible (and even likely) that something would happen at dinner to set him (and it) off.

Arthur returned, and flopped down in a chair. He looked haggard.

“How’d it go?” Merlin ventured.

“Fine. Morgana kept giving me odd looks, for some reason, but nothing happened.”

Merlin heaved a sigh of relief. “We’ll keep working on your control. I’ll talk to Gaius tonight, see what he’s found out.”

“I hope we figure something out soon. I was so tense at dinner I couldn’t eat anything.”

“I’ll get you something from the kitchens,” Merlin offered without thinking.

Arthur smiled at him, and for some reason his stomach lurched. “Thank you, Merlin. For everything.”

Merlin coughed, uncomfortable, and muttered, “I’ll just get you that food, shall I?”

As he headed to the kitchens, he wondered why leaving Arthur’s presence felt like such a relief.

***

“Did you find anything?” he asked Gaius that night.

“No,” he sighed. “What did the dragon say?”

“Oh, the usual. Riddles, double entendres, nothing we can use.”

Gaius smiled. “That is the way, with dragons. What exactly did he say?”

“‘To restore what has been lost, the souls of the giver and the receiver must touch,’” Merlin quoted.

“Hmm, yes, that doesn’t help much.”

“What are we going to do?”

“You’ve taught him to control it?” Gaius asked.

“As much as I could. He still needs practice. And it’s so clumsy, explaining it when I’m not even sure how I do it. It would be so much easier if I could just show him!”

“Just keep on as you have. I’ll keep looking. Geoffrey owes me a few favours.”

“Thanks, Gaius. You’ve been a big help.”

Gaius clapped him on the shoulder. “Get some sleep. You’ll need it.”

***

Over the next two days, Gaius spent his time in the royal archives, and Merlin continued to teach Arthur to control his magic.

After their initial success, they ran into problems. Arthur grew increasingly frustrated with the magic, and having to deal with it, and so, of course, it reacted.

“I _hate_ this!” he said, late on the second day. “I hate magic! I just wish it was gone!”

“Is it really so bad?” Merlin asked softly.

Arthur looked at him, and his expression softened. “I’m sorry, Merlin. I know you want your magic back as much as I want to be rid of it.”

Merlin sat down. “I’ve always had magic, as far back as I can remember. My mother says I was born with it. Now…” He sighed.

Arthur’s hand suddenly covered his, and he looked up in surprise.

“I’m sorry about this.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“I know, but I’m still sorry.”

Merlin noticed something suddenly. He could feel the magic again, through his contact with Arthur. It was faint, nothing like he normally felt, but there. He pulled away.

Arthur gave him a tight smile, and they got back to work.

***

Gaius went through all of the books he owned, and most of the archives, and found nothing. Merlin began to despair of ever getting his magic back.

He hadn’t touched Arthur again, except when absolutely necessary for his duties, which he was still performing.

Arthur hadn’t said anything about it, but one day when Merlin handed him a piece of parchment, their fingers brushed, and he jerked away immediately.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, nothing!” He would never get his magic back, he’d accepted that. But to feel it, secondhand, to know someone else had it, that _Arthur_ had it…

“You shouldn’t try to lie. You’re rubbish at it,” Arthur said, and put a hand on his shoulder.

Merlin propelled himself away from Arthur. “Don’t touch me!”

He saw a flash of hurt in Arthur’s eyes, quickly masked. “Sorry.”

“No, God, Arthur, I didn’t mean…” he stopped. “When I touch you, I can feel your magic,” he said quietly.

Arthur flinched. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright, it’s just…feeling what I don’t have…”

Arthur nodded. “I understand. I’m sorry.”

Merlin felt something pushing him toward Arthur. He stumbled, and Arthur caught him, looking as surprised as he felt.

Pressed full-length against Arthur, he could feel the magic thrumming through him even stronger than before.

He sobbed, and buried his head in Arthur’s shoulder.

Rather than pushing him away, Arthur held him while he cried, making meaningless soothing noises.

Merlin cried until his throat was raw and his eyes were dry and red. Arthur held onto him the entire time.

When he finally got control of himself again, he moved to pull away, embarrassed.

“I’m sorry.”

Arthur’s arms tightened around him. “There’s nothing to be sorry for.” And he leaned down and kissed him, lightly.

Merlin would have recoiled in shock, but the brush of Arthur’s lips against his brought with them a whisper of the magic, stronger than before.

He kissed him back, desperately.

Arthur moaned, and the sound went straight through him.

Suddenly the laces on his tunic were open, and Arthur laughed against his mouth. “Well, that’s useful.”

He pulled Merlin’s tunic up over his head, breaking the contact between them briefly, then moved to suck at Merlin’s neck.

“Gods, Arthur…”

“Tell me now if you don’t want this. I don’t think I could control myself if this goes on much longer.”

“I–” his voice cracked as Arthur licked his pulse point. “I don’t want you to try.”

He reached out for Arthur, fumbling at the knots in his tunic laces, but then they were suddenly untied, and he was pulling off Arthur’s tunic and shirt at the same time, while Arthur removed his own shirt.

Merlin ran his hands over Arthur’s chest, feeling the muscles ripple underneath his hands, and the current of power inside him.

When he ran his thumb over a nipple, Arthur gasped, and sparks, clearly visible in the candlelight, leapt from him to Merlin.

Merlin started, but nothing seemed to have happened, so he sucked and licked his way down Arthur’s chest to his stomach, pulling down his breeches.

Arthur pulled him up suddenly. “No.”

“What?” he asked, dazed and sluggish with lust.

“Let me fuck you, Merlin.”

At those words, Merlin moaned, and if he’d been hard before, it was nothing to what he was now. “Yes.”

Arthur steered him over to the bed, and sat him down on it. He kissed him again, long and full of promise, pushing him to lie flat.

He removed Merlin’s breeches, casting them aside, when Merlin suddenly thought of something. “Arthur…we don’t have any–”

“Trust me,” Arthur said, and spread him open.

Merlin tried to relax as Arthur eased a finger into him, but he suddenly was full of misgivings.

However, as Arthur’s finger penetrated past the second knuckle, he felt a slickness inside him.

He looked at Arthur with wide eyes.

Arthur laughed. “Told you it’d be alright.”

“You’re getting better,” Merlin managed, and as Arthur began moving his finger in and out, he couldn’t help but thrust toward him.

Arthur added a second finger, scissoring them, and as he did so he hit something that made Merlin cry out.

Arthur’s grin was evil as he hit that spot again.

“Gods, Arthur!” He couldn’t think, couldn’t move except to press against Arthur’s hand.

Arthur kept that up until he thought he would go mad, then removed his fingers suddenly. Merlin moaned at the loss.

Arthur ran his hands over his cock, standing out from his stomach, and when he removed them the skin was glistening. Merlin closed his eyes at the sight.

Then Arthur was pushing into him, and Merlin gasped. His erection wilted a little, but Arthur reached down to stroke it.

“Just relax,” Arthur whispered. “I won’t hurt you, I promise.”

He eased in slowly, watching Merlin carefully. Whenever a frisson of pain made him close his eyes and wince, Arthur stopped, waiting until it passed.

At last Arthur was all the way in, and he waited again, for Merlin to adjust.

It felt…strange. It hurt, but not as much as he’d expected, and he cautiously thrust against Arthur.

Arthur gasped and bucked into him, then pulled out and moved back in.

Whatever pain there was vanished, not only because Arthur had hit that spot again, but because he could feel the magic still, stronger than ever, almost what it was like before he’d lost it.

As Arthur thrust into him again, he could feel that it was stirring, threatening to overwhelm them both. He didn’t care. He didn’t care about anything, as long as Arthur kept moving.

Arthur’s thrusts were becoming more erratic, his gasps more frequent. Suddenly he stiffened and thrust once more into Merlin, with a guttural cry.

At the same time, Merlin felt his own release claim him, and as it flooded out of him, something else flooded back in.

Arthur collapsed on top of him, pulling out after a moment.

“What was that?”

Arthur looked at him, a bit of his smug superiority returning. “It’s called sex, Merlin.”

“Prat,” he said, slapping his hip lightly. “I meant what happened when we–” he stopped, embarrassed.

“What are you talking about?” Arthur wanted to know, but Merlin suddenly realised what had happened. He felt…normal. Like the way he’d felt before all this started.

There was a candle burning on the bedside table. Merlin gestured, and snuffed it out. Grinning widely, he flicked his fingers, and the candle lit again.

“I’ve got my magic back!” he exulted.

“So _that’s_ what the dragon meant!”

Merlin laughed. “I take it back. I’m glad he didn’t give me a straight answer. Otherwise I’d never have gotten my magic back.”

Arthur laughed, too, then sighed.

“What is it?”

“I never thought I’d say this…but I’m going to miss it.”

“Magic, you mean?”

Arthur nodded. Merlin smiled softly, and sent out a tendril of his power to card through Arthur’s hair.

He closed his eyes and sighed again, this time in contentment.

Merlin lay next to him for awhile, then thought of something.

“What are we going to tell Gaius?”


End file.
